A Look at Local Summer Music Festivals

Get out this summer. Breathe in some fresh air. Surround yourself with other passionate music fans and let loose your horrible singing voice and horrific dance. You know you’ll have an incredible time doing so.

Millions of music fans flock to music festivals every year. The popularity of these festivals increases every year as more and more positive reviews come flooding out. Wildly acclaimed annual events like Coachella, Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo attract tens of thousands of music aficionados each and every year, but, as distance and wallet-dipping would have it, you’re sure to find some more suitable than others.

For those of us faithful to the Midwest, there are a number of more localized events to seek out. Renowned electronic music festival Electric Forest is a three-day event (June 25-28) in the woods of Rothbury, Mich., that is said to give an excitement contact high just from the experience, and Detroit’s own electronic event, Movement Detroit (May 23-25), is another acclaimed place to get your fix of the genre. Here in Lansing, however, we have our own annual event: Common Ground.

Common Ground is a six-day musical festival showcasing multifarious acts of national and local prestige that begins on July 7 and runs through July 12. It’s one of the most affordable events out of any on this list with the option of buying a week’s worth of admissions for $300 or an individual day’s for less than $100. If money happens to be tight but the music cannot wait, this one’s almost a no-brainer. Definitely make sure to scoop up a ticket or two if you’re going to be in the area at the time. Common Ground tickets can be purchased at commongroundfest.com, but you might want to search the Internet for tickets to the other festivals, as their popularity means they often sell out early.

Taylor Rummel is a junior professional writing major who loves music. He has contributed to several music publications and is currently a senior writer and editor for the music blog Hillydilly. When he’s not reading, writing or finding your new favorite artist, he’s watching “Family Feud” and “The Walking Dead.”